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ISSN Online: 2377-424X

ISBN CD: 1-56700-226-9

ISBN Online: 1-56700-225-0

International Heat Transfer Conference 13
August, 13-18, 2006, Sydney, Australia

BIOHEAT TRANSFER PHENOMENA EXPRESSED ACROSS MULTIPLE LENGTH SCALES

Get access (open in a dialog) DOI: 10.1615/IHTC13.p30.30
15 pages

Abstract

Heat transfer processes in living systems are manifested across length scales extending from physiological to molecular. Until recently, most analysis has been focused on processes that can be measured and analysed at the macroscopic and microscopic levels. Advances in adjuvant sciences such as molecular biology have demonstrated that heat transfer can be used to manipulate the genetic expression of specific molecules for purposes of prophylaxis and therapy for targeted medical disease states. This paper describes the application and implications of heat transfer to produce controlled phenomena having biological response dimensions varying over many orders of magnitude. An illustrative example is the application of a spatially and temporally varying macroscopic scale thermal stress to control the pattern of genetic expression of specific proteins within cells of a tissue.